Sunday, October 28, 2012

Written by Cindy Harding forRH Reality Check. This diary is cross-posted; commenters wishing to engage directly with the author should do so at the original post.This is one of a series of powerful stories from survivors of rape, you will find them all here.
Twenty -two years ago I gave birth to my lovely daughter who was
conceived as a result of rape. This rape was a “legitimate rape,” just
as all rapes are. It was a horrible, degrading experience. I did not
report it because I did not want to have to go through being treated
like I was somehow to blame for it, I didn’t want to hear that I was the
one in the wrong and the rapist was the victim as often happens.
As a victim and survivor of rape I am appalled and disgusted with the
statements that have been made by members of the GOP and although it is
a very difficult thing to talk about, especially to strangers, I
decided that I could not, nor would I remain silent any longer.
Today, I wonder what kind of world we live in. Richard Mourdock, a
U.S Senate candidate in Indiana, this week said, “if a woman gets
pregnant as a result of rape, well it is what God intended.”
It is clear that these men have no clue what it is like to be
assaulted in such a horrible disgusting way, to be raped. It is also
clear that they have no idea what a woman struggles with after a rape,
and then what she goes through if she becomes pregnant as a result of
that rape.
I knew it was not my baby’s fault but I struggled with how to raise a
child without spewing the hate I felt for that man. I thought about how
my child would feel, and as a mother I hurt so much for my child and
what feelings she would have to live with her entire life. I can tell
you it hurts a whole hell of a lot.
There is nothing anyone can say that justifies the statements that
have been made about sexual assault, rape, abortion, and women in the
last month. I believe Richard Mourdock, Todd Aiken, and others like them
who’ve spoken out against women in the last month do not belong in
public office.
For GOP leaders to continue to endorse Mourdock and for them to say
that the Senate needs Mourdock in office shows that they agree with the
disgusting statements that have been made. They have no clue what a
woman who has been raped goes through, and now they are showing that
they don’t care what she has gone through.
These statements have set us back years, they are degrading to women,
and they are part of the reason women do not report rape, and part of
the reason I did not report my experience with rape. Women are sick of
being treated like a criminal instead of a victim. We are sick of the
shame and the blame.
I chose not to abort my pregnancy but I can find no fault
with any woman that chooses an abortion if she becomes pregnant as a
result of rape. That choice is essential.
I am a rape survivor, I am a strong, and I am a woman with a voice
and a vote and I will do what I need to do to be heard and to alert
people that the GOP platform is one that cares nothing for women nor
their feelings. I will stand up and be heard, and I need you to stand
with me.